Bono and The Edge win battle for controversial hotel development

Bono and The Edge have won a legal battle to remodel one of the most famous hotels in their native Dublin in a move that has angered conservationists.

By Tom Peterkin

8:43AM BST 26 Jul 2008

The U2 lead singer and the band's lead guitarist have been fighting to revamp the Clarence Hotel on the banks of the Liffey.

Their £120 million plans to alter the Art Deco establishment by ripping out present buildings and constructing a huge glass roof atrium known as the Skycatcher have been criticised by heritage groups, who have nicknamed the proposed structure the flying saucer.

The band members enlisted the help of the internationally renowned architect Lord Foster of Thames Bank, who said he wanted the new Clarence to define Dublin in the same way that the Savoy Hotel is associated with London.

After four years of controversy, Ireland's planning authority An Board Pleanala has ruled that the redevelopment can go ahead provided the developers preserve the facades of six buildings including the original 1930s hotel and five other Georgian and Victorian buildings.

In a statement, the U2 stars and their property developer partner Paddy McKillen said the verdict was "great news for Dublin and for Temple Bar (the nearby district famous for its pubs and restaurants) in particular".

Their jubilation was not shared by the project's critics.

"The Skycatcher will dominate Dublin's skyline and it's a pub, basically. What does that say about our city?" said Emmeline Henderson of the Irish Georgian Society.

A spokesman for Ireland's heritage protection body An Taisce added: "It undermines national legislation on architectural because of the number of protected sites being demolished."